The administration of oxygen into the lungs has long been used for the treatment of low respitory function resulting from such conditions as asthma, croup, pneumonia, mucus accumulation, pulmonary edema, congestive heart failure and coronary thrombosis. In practice, the oxygen under pressure was fed to the upper end of an endotracheal tube extending from the patient's mouth down into the trachea.
More recently, it has been found helpful to introduce various medicants into the trachea and the lungs through the endotracheal tube to moisten tissue, thin accumulated mucus or otherwise stabilize the patient despite the danger of interrupting the administration of oxygen while one or more medicants was moved down the endotracheal tube and into the trachea and lungs.
Thus there was a need for apparatus that would permit the simultaneous administration of oxygen and one or more medicants into the lungs of a patient with little or no respitory function.
This need was particularly acute in emergency situations such as in ambulances transporting a patient who exhibits low respitory function. Emergency personnel are trained to insert an endotracheal tube connected to an Ambu-Bag which when manually manipulated forces oxygen down the endotracheal tube into the lungs. But, for example, if the emergency personnel realize breathing is impeded by an accumulation of mucus, they have the life threatening choice of interrupting the flow of oxygen in order to inject a medicant capable of breaking up the mucus in the lungs.